Cedar Springs North High School
Cedar Springs North High School is a private/independent school located on the northern side of the town of Cedar Springs, Washington for 9-12. Although it has a small student body (roughly 250 students at any given time), it consistently ranks highly in surveys of academic achievement in the United States. History Cedar Springs North was founded in 1901 by the WBST company as a private school named the Salzlake Gymnasium. The school originally stood on the shores of Cedar Lake where Camp Alterwald is now located. The Gynasium originally catered exclusively for the children of the Old Families of Cedar Springs and was modelled on a German style of classical education that included the teaching of Latin and Greek. As the town prospered and the population increased, the school was incorporated in 1916 and renamed Cedar Springs North High School. The school relocated to the northern end of the town; the main building from time is now known as Weiss Hall which includes all classrooms and the cafeteria. The school underwent major renovation in the 1980s which saw the building of several additional structures, most notably the Waldegunde Weiss Memorial Performing Arts Centre. In 1920, the school opened its doors to students from all backgrounds that could meet its admission standards (both academic and financial). This selectiveness remains in force today and the student body is overwhelming composed of established families from Cedar Springs or those that work in the management of WBST. Student Life The school motto is simply Optimatibus ''("for the best") and sets high standards for its students and teachers. There are a number of clubs and societies that students can join. The oldest of these is the theatrical society Struts and Frets, although the school magazine ''Quatsch is a close second. The school football team, named the Cedar Springs Marmots, was founded in 1922. The mascot, the anthropomorphic Olympic marmot Hoffman, is a favourite at school and town sporting events. In the late 2000s, the school came under pressure from a group of residents of Cedar Valley who criticised the school for its "narrow admission policies" and its "resistance to progressive social principles". These critics cited the lack of diversity in the school population and the school's stated opposition to societies and clubs of a "political nature". This was a reference to the fact that no organisations existed that specifically addressed the needs and interests of students from non-White backgrounds or which represented a gay-straight alliance. The Washington State Board of Education added its concerns to those of the Cedar Valley residents. In 2011, Cedar Valley North officially changed its stance on clubs of a "political nature" but only to say that they were "not prohibited". informal students groups representing various minorities have come into existence since then. In 2016, long-serving-principal Maximillian Töpfer retired and the school appointed Asmo Díaz as the new principal. By appointing a man of Latino origin, the school was seen by some as making an effort to diversify while others dismissed this appointment as "window-dressing".